Tinder’s latest data debunks 6 pervasive myths about online dating

In only four-and-a-half years, Tinder has become one of the most widely-used dating platforms in the world. But despite 1.6 billion swipes per day and over 20 billion total matches, the app has been unable to escape its reputation of being a sleazy platform for finding casual sex.

This week, the matchmaking giant released the results of a recent survey it commissioned called "Modern Dating Myths."

The survey compared the app's users to traditional, offline daters. According to a report by The New York Times, the survey was administered to 7,072 Tinder users between the ages of 18 and 36, while a second survey was was administered to 2,502 offline daters between the ages of 18 and 35 by Morar Consulting.

Online dating hasn't killed committed relationships

f11photo/Shutterstock

Tinder is out to squash the myth that online dating has led to a decline in exclusive, monogamous relationships.

According to their data, only 9% of men on Tinder report that maintaining a committed relationship is difficult, compared to 30% of offline daters. Their results also show that only 9% of Tinder users say it is difficult to commit to a relationship because of how many options there are, versus 42% of offline daters who give the same rationale.

Tinder users are finding love more often than offline daters, but not by much

Rafi Letzter/Business Insider

Tinder says the perception that its users aren't on the app to find love is misinformed. In fact, they report that 35% of online daters say "I love you" within the first three months of being in a relationship, with the number for offline daters being slightly lower at 30%.

Interestingly, their surveys also discovered that men are 7% more likely, overall, to say "I love you" than women are.

Tinder users are more likely to practice safe sex

Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Fully aware that there is surely a segment of its user base that views it as a hook-up app, Tinder surveyed daters on their safe sex practices, or lack thereof.

They found that 70% of online daters report practicing safe sex most of the time or always, compared to 63% of offline daters.

The survey also found that 67% of Tinder users always use a condom when having sex with a new partner for the first time, while the number for offline daters is 58%.

Tinder users are more likely to take political views into account when considering a potential partner

Thomson Reuters

It should be no surprise to learn that both offline and online daters give serious importance to political views when judging potential partners. It might be surprising, however, to learn that online daters consider opposing political views a bigger deal breaker than offline daters do — 71% to 66%.

The survey also found that women are 5% more likely than men to rank differences in top career aspirations as a main deal-breaker.

Women are way more likely to send unsolicited sexts than you probably thought

In perhaps the most shocking statistic revealed by the survey, Tinder found that men are not significantly more likely to send unsolicited sexts.

In fact, men and women both reported to sending unsolicited sexts in equal amounts — 50% for each.

And finally, if you want to go on more dates, Tinder might be exactly what you need

Getty Images/Kevin Frayer

Maybe the best part of using a dating app is that you'll find plenty of people on it who are looking to date. Tinder found that 63% of online daters report going on 1-2 dates per week, while offline daters reported in at a rate of 52%.

To see more results from the "Modern Dating Myths" survey, click here.